


The Columbia University Library

by DeathFraud



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Multi, everyone has issues and no one is happy, lmao this is going to be a fun one, this is a big huge mess, who doesn't love angst and regret
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-10
Updated: 2017-04-13
Packaged: 2018-10-17 01:57:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,428
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10584033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeathFraud/pseuds/DeathFraud
Summary: A quiet place to relax and read would not be seen as so intriguing, but there's so much that happens in secret within the library. The campus library has seen better days, and so have the students and faculty who frequently visit.





	1. Jefferson

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> recommended listening: a little death - the neighbourhood

Perhaps the only place where Jefferson could work _without interruption_ was the Columbia University Library _._ His dorm was not comfortable, nor was in habitable. It was Thursday, after all! James always cleaned out the tiny room on Thursdays leaving their room torn apart for a few hours. He could almost hear his roommate now, carrying on about dust or some substance that was wiped onto the bottom of his desk. In truth, it was one of the few tendencies of Madison that Jefferson admired. His superiority complex had truthfully turned into more a god complex at this point; no one could compare to the great Thomas Jefferson. Well, no one except for Hamilton.

 

The sanctuary that was the on campus library was one of the amenities that was often taken for granted. The wifi was a bit slow, but that was to be expected. Many complained about the library, but it truly was Jefferson’s safe haven. He would pick a moderately sized table in a corner and sprawl the contents of his bag onto the flat surface. His laptop sat a bit far away from him, leaving room for his calculator and notebook. A few textbooks were to the right of him, pressed up against the dingy off-white painted wall. A small container held a few select writing utensils -- two pencils, a sharpie, and five colored pens. The purple pen was running low on ink, but was that really a surprise at all? Thus, he retreated into his mind, connecting his earbuds to his laptop and pulling up Spotify to select something calming that would effectively drown out the sounds of the insolent group of freshmen a few tables away.

 

Jefferson had only been working on his Calculus II homework for about fifteen minutes when a familiar, sickening voice brought him out of the intense world of mathematics only to be faced with his worst nightmare. Alexander Hamilton was that of an enemy. He was someone to be weary of. He was too intelligent for his own good. Reluctantly, he reached forward to pause his song, his eyes narrowing and lip curled up in disgust. “What do you want, Hamilton?” he drawled, followed by a long sigh.

 

“I asked if I could sit by you. All the other tables are taken, you’re the only familiar face,” Alexander repeated, a goofy half smile brightening his features.

 

Just like that, Jefferson’s perfect oasis of solitude had been set on fire and the remains were left to be devoured by vicious desert rattlesnakes. He raised an eyebrow, all but surprised at this revelation. “Sit,” he replied, elegantly gesturing to his perfect table with all of his items strewn over it.

 

“Can you move some of your stuff?”

 

“I don’t know, can I?”

 

“Will you? Please? I really need to read this really neat book I just found. It’s about how every nation would react politically and economically to a zombie apocalypse and--”

 

“Just sit down. Some of us have shit to do that is actually important and pertinent to _real_ studies of situations that could actually happen,” Jefferson hissed, setting his textbooks on the ground beside him and sliding his computer over to the corner, angled to be facing a bit more outward than he liked. This left about a quarter of the table to be used by Alexander. He plopped his book down on the table and took a seat across from the taller male.

 

“Thomas, you’re doing imaginary equations; so, actually, those are less likely to happen than an outbreak of disease that turns people into cannibals! You really should get a copy of this book, it’s so great! Hey, is that your Spotify? Are you listening to Lana Del Rey?” he said matter-of-factly. As much as Jefferson was perceived as high and mighty, Hamilton debatably was much worse. Both men were condescending and rather cruel, but Hamilton was a real smartass.

 

“Can you shut up? I’m trying to finish this,” Jefferson groaned, clearly not paying attention to the situation at hand. All that mattered was Calculus II and his grade in said class. If only Hamilton would just stop his incessant babbling.

 

“She’s very popular in the gay community. I don’t really like all the _daddy_ kink lyrics, but I mean, it’s cool that you do.”

 

“Why are you still talking to me?”

 

“My friends are busy. They don’t really like the library all that much… I can’t really afford to buy books so I come here whenever I want to read something new. You looked lonely over here, so I figure I’d talk to you! What did you get on that poli sci test the other day?” Hamilton spoke loudly, his words quickly flowing from his mouth like a jagged stream. Jefferson struggled to keep up with processing numbers and whatever the annoying Latino had to say to him.

 

“93%. Now leave me alone,” Jefferson dismissively waved his hand, unamused with the conversation. Did this kid never have a clear pattern of thought? Was he always so confusing?

 

“I got a 98%! Wow, I can’t believe I did better than _you_! Everyone thinks that you’re the smartest person in that class, maybe things have changed, huh?”

 

“I’m going to kick your ass if you don’t get your ass up from this table and walk it the hell out of this building right now,” he snarled, hand clenched into a tight fist around his poor pencil. He had half a mind to stand up and deck that man right now.

 

“Are you jealous that I’m smarter than you? Guess I’m just more pedantic. To be a good lawyer you kinda have to be real pedantic. You know, at least I don’t have a daddy kink!”

 

“Seriously, fuck you,” Thomas growled, dark brown hues lit up in pure anger, “You’re a real piece of shit, you know that? This is why your friends avoid you.”

 

“You should come to my debate club. I’d like to really have an intelligent argument with you.”

 

“I feel nothing but unadulterated hatred towards you. Why on earth would I show up to your pathetic club?”

 

“‘Cause you’re in a library all alone and no one likes you. You’ve gotta be bored,” Hamilton paused, suddenly rising to his feet and retrieving his beloved novel. He smirked, “Wanna come to my dorm? There’s less people. It’s a single person dorm, my roommate moved out ‘cause we didn’t get along too well…”

 

“What?” Jefferson spat, confusion clouding his features as he leaned forwards. He was hard to understand, ever harder to follow his meaning between sentence to sentence. If Hamilton spoke long enough, Jefferson was sure that he could cover upwards of thirty topics just in passing. “You must be mistaken, Hamilton, I don’t like you. I don’t like you as a person. I don’t like you as a human being, for that matter! I can’t stand your presence. You’re like a gnat that won’t stop following me. You know what happens to gnats, Hamilton?”

 

“You go back to their dorm with them and make out a bit?”

 

“Ye--Wait. No. No! What the fuck? _What is wrong with you?_ ”

 

“I see what you mean, gnats are pretty small… You know that there is a type of fly that is genetically modified to--”

 

“Do you want to keep talking about insects or do you want to go back to your dorm?” Jefferson pointedly asked, shoving his things into his bag with a huff. He didn’t like Hamilton, but he couldn’t just pass up this opportunity. Hamilton might have been annoying, but he was attractive. There was no denying that. The shorter of the two must have gotten the point. Thank God!

 

“See, you’re not as dumb as I thought you were!” Hamilton scoffed, a smirk curling the corners of his lips. Jefferson slung his bag over his shoulder, dragging himself out of the library at the other male’s side.

 

The trek to his enemy’s dorm was long, and rather cold. The sky was grey and cloudy, the feeling of warm sunshine completely absent. Jefferson couldn’t lie, several times he had thought about ditching this supposed makeout session and returning to his acquaintance Madison. He could handle a few more hours of cleaning, couldn’t he? Probably not. Better keep walking. Damn, it was freezing! How could Hamilton strut around like he wasn’t halfway frozen to death?

 

Jefferson was always fashionable, but usually never quite practical. He had decided on a plain black tee and a thin jacket the university gave out, along with black skinny jeans (totally not from a trashy mall store, by the way) and a nice pair of sneakers. His counterpart, Hamilton, was wearing an old, ratty looking sweatshirt, jeans, and scuffed white Converse. Jefferson wouldn’t be caught dead in that outfit. If this was going to be a regular thing -- which it _wasn’t_ , mind you -- then he would have to see to it that the other man have something suitable in his wardrobe.

 

Jefferson did not like Hamilton. Not even a little bit. However, that didn’t stop him from letting the smaller male drag him up four flights of stairs to a tiny little broom closet of a dorm. It was a mess, and suddenly Jefferson was thankful that Madison was such a clean freak. Hamilton pushed him down onto the bed and promptly got on top of him.

 

He would be lying if he said that this was the first time this had happened. In fact, this was third time. Jefferson determined that Calculus II could wait. This was undoubtedly becoming a large problem. He couldn’t just allow this to continue, could he? He could. He definitely could. Hamilton’s lips against his just felt so _right_. He couldn’t help but nip at his bottom lip, anxious to really start having fun. Everyone had always wondered how the two of them could argue so passionately at the top of their lungs about policy; if only they knew that the passion between them was truly just extreme sexual tension.

 

“Do you like me now?” Hamilton whispered, arms draped over Jefferson’s shoulders. The latino had no idea what he was expecting to hear in reply, but he couldn’t help but be disappointed when the only response from Jefferson was a snort of derision. As if shoving tongues down each others’ throats was going to suddenly change Jefferson’s mind on the ever so exasperating Alexander. “If you didn’t like me at all, you wouldn’t be here.”

 

“You don’t know that,” the taller male replied, rolling his eyes before biting the other man’s neck. A few hickeys never hurt anyone. In truth, he didn’t want to hear that voice for a while. After all, he didn’t walk all the way to this shitty dorm to argue with that incoherent excuse for a scholar. He smirked when he heard Hamilton gasp, thus leading him to bite down a bit harder.

 

“Come on, just admit it…” Hamiltonw whined, entangling a hand into Jefferson’s tight, bouncy curls, “You _like_ me. You can just say it, Thomas, no one has to know…” And with that, the fun was over. Raising his head from the other man’s neck, Jefferson met his gaze with an incredibly vexatious glare. He was under the impression that this was going to just be something with no strings, not an emotional admission of affection. There was no love in that room, that was for sure.

 

“I loathe you,” Jefferson stated plainly, wanting there to be no question in the way that he felt.

 

“That’s not the L word I want to hear,” Hamilton paused, “Come on, just tell me you _like_ me and then you can _fuck_ me.” He whined a bit, shifting his hips in a teasing manner against Jefferson.

 

“No thanks, I didn’t come here for this,” he growled, pushing Hamilton off of him. He knew of Hamilton’s reputation. The last thing Jefferson wanted was to end up with some kind of venereal disease! He rose to his feet quickly, trying to ignore the possible repercussions for his abrupt actions.

 

“Hey! You can’t just-- Thomas, seriously, dude, come on!” he spat out, shock evident in his brown hues, “Just stay, c’mon, we don’t have to--” Hamilton cried out, staring up at Jefferson in disbelief.

 

“Goodnight, Hamilton. Maybe some other time,” Jefferson replied, grabbing his bag and exiting the room. He didn’t feel too guilty leaving Hamilton there all alone; it wasn’t like he didn’t have any other friends to bother. No, Jefferson didn’t want to give Hamilton what he wanted right away. He was a luxury few could afford. Perhaps if the latino could show some restraint he would consider doing a bit more than kissing. Besides, he had Calculus II homework and if he brought a pastry from the bakery back to Madison, he was sure that his roommate would agree to finish it for him. His dorm would be clean and comfortable; James would be too exhausted to hound him with questions and interrogate him about his whereabouts. Laying down in bed would be a blessing at this point.

 

The bakery was not too far away from Hamilton’s dorm building. He quickly exited into the harsh wind once more, quickly picking up pace so he could once again be in the warmth and comfort of a controlled environment. It was getting rather dark, the shadows of various buildings spread out beautifully over the pavement. Jefferson walked briskly to the tiny campus bakery heaving a sigh of relief when he saw the familiar store. As he entered, the bell on the door rang in its familiar pitch. Jefferson approached the counter, a bit surprised to see none other than Eliza Schuyler behind the counter.

 

“Hey!” she greeted, clearly scrambling to keep up with what little orders she had this late in the day, “Just in time, I was just about to start closing! What’ll you have, Thomas? Or, rather, what does James want this time?” She smiled warmly at him, which made Jefferson raise an eyebrow. How had they broken up? She was so kind and sweet; clearly Hamilton had done something unspeakably wrong to her. Hell, if that optimistic girl couldn’t keep him, perhaps no one could put up with Alexander Hamilton.

 

“Mads has been raving about some kind of apple tart. He says it’s to die for. Two, please,” he stated with an eyeroll, “Why are you working so late? Usually I catch you here in the morning before class.”

 

“Understaffed!” she replied. Well that explained her evident exhaustion. Jefferson couldn’t help but feel a bit awkward having just came from sucking face with her ex boyfriend. No one knew, and he wished to keep it that way. “It’ll be $3.75 today.”

 

“Keep the change,” he stated, handing the woman a five dollar bill.

 

“Thank you! I really appreciate it, Thomas,” she said, handing him a small bag that contained the apple tarts.

 

“No, thank you, Miss Schuyler. I’m sure you’ll see me again come Monday morning with my accomplice. Now, please, close shop, go home,” Thomas stated, grabbing the bag and heading for the door. He couldn’t help but feel a bit sick when he heard her farewell. Eliza Schuyler was perhaps the most patient human being on earth. What _had_ Hamilton done to her? What heinous crime could drive that woman with the sunny disposition away? Those thoughts clouded his mind as he rushed back to his building. Perhaps he had just dodged a bullet.


	2. Lafayette

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> recommended listening: kathleen - catfish and the bottlemen

Having a crush on your insanely attractive professor was definitely something to be frowned upon; however the French transfer student couldn't help himself. After all, he was a senior, so it wasn't a big deal, right? Lafayette had been silent about his affections for as long as possible. It all changed quite drastically the day that he was called out by none other than Alexander Hamilton.

 

The foursome were all together at a large table in the library for their study session. Of course, they never did too much studying. Mulligan usually sketched new designs for his ambitious clothing line he hoped to produce, Laurens was doodling in a sketchbook, and Hamilton was usually loudly announcing which politician did what from a news article. The Frenchman was no artist, and as much as he cared for politics, he had no interest in what Hamilton was screaming about. In fact, he usually found himself with a foreign policy book and a practice United States citizenship test. His friends would always joke with him about being deported; Lafayette had many, many reasons to stay in America after he graduated. It just so happened that one of those reasons had just walked in the door.

 

“Is that Professor Washington?” Laurens asked, “Holy shit, it is! What is he doing here?”

 

“A better question would be why is Laf practically drooling over there. Hello? Earth to French kid!” Mulligan teased, waving a hand in front of Lafayette’s face. His fixed gaze faltered and he snapped out of his stupor.

 

“I am not drooling,” he growled, sitting back in his chair and crossing his arms. Of course his gaze wandered back to the professor. Washington had helped him over the past year to prepare for his citizenship test as well as improve his English. Lafayette was fluent, but to speak more eloquently he would have to improve his vocabulary. “I am simply… gazing in his direction. You are mistaken, Hercules.”

 

“Oh dude, he's like… way older than you. Unless… Are you into that?” Hamilton taunted, sticking his tongue out at his friend, “Laf’s got a crush, guys! You know, we should totally help him! I have his noon class tomorrow for English composition! You should come with. Like, if you want it, get it.”

 

“I do not know what you mean,” Lafayette replied, his cheeks burning already, “I just have a silly little attachment, it's unimportant. Besides, that breaks school policy, doesn't it? Not all of us are like you, Alexander.”

 

“No, I say you should fuck him,” Laurens shrugged, eyes glimmering with playfulness, “You should go up to him now and say hi. Touch his arm or something while you're at it. It's like a fucking porno with this guy, I swear to God…”

 

“I will say hello, but not because of what you had to say…” Lafayette responded, already visibly flustered. Mulligan laughed, rolling his eyes.

 

“Oh come on, Laf! It's okay if you have a crush on a professor. We’ve all been there,” Mulligan stated, shooting the Frenchman a sympathetic glance.

 

“Amen,” Laurens raised his hands theatrically, “The new Spanish Professor is insanely hot. Have you met him, Alexander?”

 

“Can you introduce me?” Alexander purred, leaning on Laurens and giggling, “Washington’s a good guy, Laf. The worst that can happen is that he rejects you. Just go up there and ask for some … private lessons. Then you get touchy feely until you get what you want!”

 

Lafayette _was not_ at all like Alexander. A purely sexual relationship didn't interest him by any means. He liked meaningful relationships. Gender and age just simply didn't matter to him; a good person was a good person! Washington had taken the time to talk to him and introduce him to the only friends he had. He helped lessen the language barrier that divided Lafayette from the majority of his classmates. Mulligan patted his friend’s back, letting him know that he wasn’t alone in this endeavor. The three didn’t care if Lafayette was involved with a teacher or not. Their encouragement was almost a bit discouraging! He knew very well how John and Alexander acted. Nevertheless, he rose to his feet and approached the front desk where Washington was. The faded carpet made an odd sound under his combat boots that didn't help his nervousness. The walk felt like it took hours and his heart rate had significantly increased. When he reached the desk, he placed a hand on the flat surface, drumming his fingertips against the wood. “Professor, it’s good to see you. I wasn't expecting you to be here,” Lafayette greeted, trying to get that awful heat off of his face, “Are you busy?”

 

“Not at all, Lafayette. What can I do for you?” Washington asked, turning to face his student. The foreign transfer student looked incredibly nervous, which was baffling to Washington. They had spent so much time outside of class together that he had assumed any anxieties should have faded by now.

 

“I have my citizenship test coming up,” Lafayette stated, nervously playing with his hand in an effort to keep calm, “I was wondering if you could possibly go over a few more topics with me… I am free all next week! If you can't, it's fine, but don't you think that it will be beneficial?” He glanced behind him at his friends, who were huddled together staring and whispering. This was a disaster.

 

“If that's what you think will make the difference, I’ll be happy to help you anytime. My office is always open to you, come in whenever you need to,” Washington answered with a warm smile.

 

“ _Merci beaucoup_ , Professor!” Lafayette exclaimed, a goofy grin on his face. He rushed back to his friends, who all were on the edge of their seat cheering loudly. They were quickly shushed, and Alexander noticed Washington look back at them with an amused expression on his face.

 

“Gay,” Laurens whispered, playfully punching his friend’s shoulder. Lafayette crossed his arms over his chest, unable to look at any of them.

 

“All I did was ask for a private lesson,” he replied with a shrug, “Do you want me to stay in this country? Yes you do. In order for me to that, I have to become a citizen. If I have to go back to France you won't have the ability to seamlessly make fun of me all the damn time. Get your minds out of the gutter.” Laurens and Hamilton glanced at each other for a quick moment, then the most evil looking grin spread over their faces.

 

They immediately high fived, and started the most ridiculous scene. Laurens was adlibbing the most stereotypical porn-like music beat while Hamilton leaned up against him and let out a few breathy moans. “Oh, professor!” Alexander cried out, “I need you to _teach_ me a lesson!~” The pair broke into loud laughter, clapping and bowing to their friends. Lafayette tried to look less than amused, but he couldn't help but crack a smile. He often wondered the true nature of Alexander and John’s relationship; however, asking would be rather uncouth. Some things were better left unsaid.

 

“No pare, sigue, sigue! No pare, sigue, sigue! No pare, sigue, sigue!” the two chanted, doing a poorly choreographed dance. Mulligan eventually joined in, leaving the Frenchman to watch with pursed lips. He let out a labored sigh, placing an elbow on the desk and resting his chin on the heel of his palm.

 

“Americans,” he breathed, “You are truly unique. All three of you. Congratulations.”

 

“Hey, we’re not the ones who have the hots for a teacher,” Laurens responded, raising an eyebrow playfully, “You’re the one who has fallen into the American porno trope! That's enough of a. citizenship test for me, don't you think, boys?”

 

“Oh, definitely,” Hamilton stated, “Professor Washington is the reason I’m in this school; he got me an assload of scholarships. Yet, you don't see me flirting with him.”

 

“You're too busy with Laurens, aren't you?” Lafayette teased, perplexed to hear the answer.

 

“Oh, you know it! I’m so distracting. Why don't you want _me_ , Laf? Is it the older man thing? Nice. Your daddy issues can actually come in handy!” Laurens purred, reaching over to grab one of Lafayette’s hands.

 

“Heh. _Handy_ ,” Mulligan chuckled.

 

“Stop it with that _shit_ ,” Lafayette whined, not enjoying the spotlight being put on him, “We all know you’ve a thing for Madison. He’s so far up Jefferson’s ass it's unreal!”

 

“You’ve?” Hamilton stated, smirking.

 

“You’ve,” Mulligan confirmed, smirking right back.

 

“ _You’ve!_ ” Laurens exclaimed, his curls bouncing as he jumped up, “Whom’st’ve.”

 

“What is that even supposed to mean?” Lafayette asked pointedly, pulling his hand away from John’s.

 

“It means… That’s not the point! The point is that you used a contraction and that's the most American thing you could do,” Laurens snorted.

 

“Oh, but don't let Daddy Washington hear you say that. He hates the use of contractions in papers! Wait, on second thought, use one. Definitely. Maybe he’ll bend you over his desk and--”

 

“Alexander!” Lafayette hissed, unwilling to hear more of that lewd language, “Quit that!”

 

“He likes it! Keep going, Alex,” Laurens nudged him playfully.

 

“Oh _Professor_ , I used a contraction! I’ve been such a bad little English student… How will I ever pass my test without punishment? Oh, please, don't be too hard with me, _daddy_ ,” Alexander put an arm around John, placing his palm on the other man’s soft freckled cheek, “I need to be spanked. Please? _S'il vous plaît, papa_?”

 

“Tais-toi!” Lafayette growled, his cheeks burning with embarrassment. He could usually tolerate his friends’ teasing, but this was just too much.

 

“Hey, Laf, they're just kidding,” Mulligan reassured the flustered Frenchman.

 

“God, Alex, that was hot. If I was Washington and you were Lafayette, I’d totally fuck you. Rule breaking or not, I’d definitely be into that shit!” Laurens grinned, leaning forwards towards Alexander a bit.

 

“C’mon, we don't have to be Washington and Lafayette to go through with that!” Hamilton replied, his voice a bit breathy.

 

“Ew. None of that, please; we’re in public.” Lafayette groaned, pantomiming a puking motion, “Let’s leave the nasty boys alone and go back to our dorm, Herc. We have ice cream waiting for us!”

 

“Nothing could make me give up mint chip ice cream, even voyeurism with you idiots.” Mulligan sighed, waving goodbye to the aforementioned pair of idiots. He rose to his feet and practically dragged Lafayette away from the table. “Sometimes they can be a little extra,” he stated, “You’re cool, Laf. No worries.”

 

“If anything could make me leave this country, it's those two when they're all over each other like that…”

 

“Let me guess, you can't get Eliza off of your mind? Yeah, I know the feeling… It haunts me too, Laf. The whole situation is fucked, but it's not for us to judge.”

 

“Mm. I suppose you're right… Do you think she's still sad?”

 

“Wouldn't you be? If your high school sweetheart up and cheated on you and didn’t act the least upset?”

 

“Alexander is free of remorse,” Lafayette stated. The rest of the walk back to their dorm was silent. They silently thought about how Alexander had wronged Eliza, and in such a brutal way. Lafayette was a gentleman, he wouldn't dare engage in behavior like that. He was thankful that he didn't act the way that Alexander did when he was in a relationship. Sure, he hadn't dated anyone since moving to America. He couldn't help it, someone permanently held his gaze over the past four years. He didn't realize that they had walked into the dorm building until he was ran into. A jolt of consciousness burst through his body and he widened his eyes.

 

“A-Ah, excuse me, sir,” came the voice of Aaron Burr. Of all people Lafayette did not want to run into right now, he had to say that Burr was high up on that list. “Lafayette! Mulligan! How are you guys?” Be cool. Play it safe. Don’t be douchebag. Burr was one of the least liked people in the entire college. He tried a bit too hard and was always incredibly vague. Boring, blank, uninteresting. Lafayette fondly remembered Jefferson’s descriptive word of choice: _basic_. It was highly appropriate, one of the most accurate descriptions of the man. Who knew one simple word could describe one’s entire personality? The English language was so fascinating.

 

“We’re fine,” Mulligan replied, obviously not in the mood be sucked in another dead end conversation with Burr.

 

“Are you guys hungry? Do you want to come out to dinner with me?”

 

“No,” was the resounding answer from both Mulligan and Lafayette.

 

“We already ate, and we have to study…” Lafayette explained, trying to be as kind as possible without actually seeming like he wanted to spend time with Burr.

 

“Oh! Alright! Just text me if you change your mind!” Burr called out, waving goodbye as he made his way past the other two men. They both heaved sighs of relief, words not needed to express how they felt about Aaron. Perhaps he meant well, but every time he spoke, Lafayette had half a mind to drive the nearest sharpest object through his skull and puncture his temporal lobe. That would surely be less painful than to have to be forced to listen to that man carry on for more than two minutes. They climbed the stairs up to their floor, and all but ran down the hall to get to the pint of ice cream that awaited them. Lafayette was faster, as per usual, and got the door open quite easily. Too easily.

 

“You forgot to lock the door!” Lafayette hissed, “Do you know how dangerous that is? All my stuff is in there! Someone could steal it!”

 

“Ah, fuck me.” Mulligan let out a groan of disgust. Here we go again! So he forgot to lock the door at least once or twice a week. Big deal. He was more afraid of Lafayette’s scolding than he was about possibly burglary.

 

And thus, the hour long lecture from the pissed off Frenchman began. He was ranting and raving, pacing around the floor and often throwing his hands up. Hercules merely tuned him out; his roommate wasn’t even speaking English anymore, so arguing was utterly pointless. Oh well, at least he wasn’t in the same room as Burr; he’d take angry lecturing over having to lay eyes on Burr any day. Lafayette wouldn’t have been as harsh if he had just had not been taunted about his feelings for Washington. He already felt guilty enough for it as it is, Laurens and Hamilton were practically overkill. Perhaps he was taking all of his frustrations out on his friend. Eventually, he ran out of steam and plopped down on his bed. A deep exhale came from the taller of the two and he closed his dark brown eyes.

 

“Done?” Mulligan asked, “... There’s ice cream.”

 

“Please,” he whispered, pressing his forefingers to his temples while he waited for his friend to hand him a spoon. Hercules sat beside his friend and opened up the pint of ice cream, waiting to let Lafayette have the first bite.

 

“If it makes you feel better,” the fashion student paused, unable to resist, “For what it’s worth, I think Professor Washington’s pretty hot, too…”


	3. Eliza

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> recommended listening: redbone - childish gambino

Eliza had decided that if Maria Reynolds refused to come into work today, she was going to kill her. The fact that her ex boyfriend had cheated on her with the lovely Miss Reynolds didn’t even bother her anymore; all she wanted to do was to have a quiet night away from her sisters and the bakery. Peggy and Angelica were all over her! They smothered her with sisterly love and tried to help her feel better. What they didn’t know was that Eliza was a levelheaded individual, much unlike Alexander, and she could take care of herself. Finding out that her long time boyfriend had been secretly hooking up with her coworker made her absolutely disgusted, but it wasn’t the end of the world. She had her suspicions long before Alexander was caught. In fact, she had expected John in that bed, not Maria. Now, because Maria couldn’t face Eliza out of shame, she was stuck working mornings and evenings. It was Friday night, and  _ goddamn it _ she was going to find a quiet place to lose herself in a book!

 

Well the bell on the door rang she looked up, a bit surprised to see Maria in the flesh. “You finally decided to come in!” she greeted, a hint of malice in her tone, “Please, just take over for me. If I have to stay in this bakery any longer, I’m afraid I might lose my mind…” She kept her words kind and dainty, not in the mood to talk about her ex boyfriend’s infidelity. There was nothing she could do to change what Alexander had done; it was over between them. She didn’t need anymore girl’s nights drinking wine and crying over boys. Eliza was well over that stage of grief. In fact, she hadn’t grieved at all!

 

“Hey… Eliza, I’m really sorry about all of this…” Maria stated, reaching a hand up to scratch the back of her neck anxiously. The black haired girl waved her hand dismissively, sickness rising from her stomach to her throat.

 

“Don’t worry about it, ok? Just do your job…” she breathed, taking off her gloves and her apron. She was desperate to get the hell out and have some time to herself. She bent down below the counter and grabbed her pink, cat covered backpack and slung it over one shoulder. Before Maria could even react, the Schuyler Sister was out of the door, practically running to the Columbia University Library. The last thing she wanted was to associate with Maria, and she knew that she wouldn’t be caught dead in a library; Eliza was safe for now. The library was a haven for her. She loved picking out a random book and reading it no matter what it happened to be about. She had read about everything from marine life to cook books on Norwegian food.

 

She entered her safe haven and began to roam the aisles upon aisles of books. Pale fingertips skimmed over the spines of the beaten up texts until they hooked onto a particularly odd feeling cover. She pulled the book out to look at it, feeling the rough leather that kept the pages bound together. It looked to be a book of poetry, and she smiled down at the delicate, yellowing pages. She found a small table in this desolate section of the library. She sat, stroking the grooves and bumps in the leather for a few moments. Eliza couldn't help but wonder how old this beauty of a book was. She had not come across anything quite so exquisite in her search for rarities; this was truly a treat. Soon enough, the dark haired girl was absorbed into the text, eyes quickly scanning over each page.

 

Hours had passed before Eliza was back into reality. The gothic poems had required all of her attention and focus, so she hadn’t even noticed that there was another person that had shown up at her little table.

 

“I found you!” came Angelica’s voice, a halfhearted smile rested on her face, “I was beginning to worry that you had ditched out on me. Girl’s night, remember?”

 

“How could I forget…” she replied, almost disheartened. She loved her sisters dearly, but they didn’t give the poor girl any room to breath. She wasn’t  _ helpless _ . Well… not anymore. Eliza could handle herself sufficiently, thank you very much. She was an independent woman who didn’t need anyone to take care of her or nurse her nonexistent wounds. It hurt that Alexander had wronged her; oh, it hurt like a thousand kamikoto knives had been shoved deep into her heart. Her intricate iron heartstrings had already been torn apart long before her lover’s infidelity. She was not fragile by any means, and she would not tolerate being treated like a porcelain doll any longer. “I really just wanted to spend some time alone. I’m fine, Angelica, really! It happened, it’s over with. I’ve moved on. You need to move on. Sometimes fretting over the past doesn’t help anything… We each have a different, unique healing process!”

 

“I just don’t like to see you so upset, Eliza… And what with the baby…”

 

“We’re not talking about that right now.”

 

“What?” Angelica’s features scrunched into an almost appalled glare, “You’re telling me that you’re just going to ignore the fact that you’re carrying  _ his _ baby? Eliza, this is a big deal! Oh my god, he doesn’t know does he…? You have to tell him! He’s going to turn his fucking act around! I’ll force him to!”

 

“I’m fine. I can take care of the baby myself. Alexander isn’t mature enough for a child, we both know that. I… I have time to make a decision on what to do with the baby. I have options, Angelica. This isn’t a big deal. Please, relax… Stop making this into something it doesn’t have to be,” Eliza replied in a hushed tone, embarrassed of her sister’s passion. She had already weighed her options when it came to her pregnancy. She didn’t want to terminate the pregnancy unless she absolutely had to. When it came to adoption, she felt a bit anxious. She wanted to be a mother, but she was unsure if she would be able to truly take care of a child on her own. She loved children and always had! She wanted her baby to have the best life possible; admittedly, the baby may not have the best life alongside her. It was a painful thought, but a selfless one.

 

“Alexander needs to know. He needs to help out! If you don’t tell him, I will. I have to do what’s best for you… for the both of you. Does our father know…?” Angelica asked, physically wincing at the question. She sat beside her sister, gingerly placing a hand on her arm. She was unbelievably pissed, but she had to stay calm for her beloved sister. Eliza was perhaps the best part of Angelica’s life. The two of them had always been incredibly close. As children, they were inseparable. Their relationship with Peggy just wasn’t the same. She was always too cautious and preferred to play by the rules. Angelica and Eliza were adventurous and liked to bend and break the extreme rules laid forth by their father. Angelica couldn’t help but inwardly chuckle. Her father’s biggest fear -- pregnancy before marriage -- had manifested itself.

 

Nevertheless, she knew her sister would make the right choice, whatever choice that might be. She would be more than willing to help babysit and raise the child if so be it, and she was also willing to help scope out a family who wished to adopt. In the pit of Eliza’s stomach, she knew that she was already attached to the small bundle of cells that was beginning to grow and develop in her womb. She was far more motherly than any of her sisters. Maternal instinct came naturally to Eliza, far more so than it had for Peggy or Angelica. They’d find a way to manage, wouldn’t they?

 

“After my next appointment, I will tell Alexander. I’ve just been working so much that it’s impossible to find time to speak to him privately… He will have a minimum say in this matter. Honestly, Angelica, I don’t think he will want anything to do with me or the baby. It’s manageable. We do not need him or his feeble attempts at an apology. As for father, I’ve been saving up a secret fund for when he decides to disown me,” she paused, letting out a deep sigh and leaning back, “It’s still early in the pregnancy. It won’t be obvious for a very long time. Whatever happens to us, this baby is going to be loved more than it can comprehend… Can we stop with this, please? I’m in the middle of a book.”

 

“Yes, of course… We don’t have to talk about it at this point in time. Eliza, eventually you’re going to have no choice but to think about this… You’re lucky that you have the best sister in the world! Let me at least sit with you? I have to finish taking course notes anyways. We have a debate coming up and I want to be the most informed woman I can possibly be. Someone has to whip these boys into shape, don’t you think?” Angelica teased, a gentle smile gracing her lips. She leaned back in her chair, taking a deep breath. She was fed up with Alexander’s bullshit. Hadn’t he already haunted her life enough? He had broken her sister’s heart and now she was forced to argue with him. Lord have mercy, he better be ready for the storm headed towards him.

 

“You are the most qualified for the job, my dear sister,” Eliza replied, playing with the edge of an old page, “Show them the true elegance and grace a Schuyler Sister exerts upon the world. They’ll be blinded, Angelica. I wish I could be there to see it! Maybe after my exam I can run down there to watch?”

 

“I want you to see me rip Alex a new asshole. I bet that will truly make you feel one hundred percent better. He’s going to get his ass kicked.  _ Jefferson _ too. They’ll be too busy focused on yelling at each other that they won’t even realize that I’ve already won.”

 

“I’d love to see that… Hey, Angelica?”

 

“Hm?”

 

“Thank you.”

 

“For…?”

 

“Being the best sister I could ever wish to have,” she stated with a grin, “I don’t tell you enough, do I?”

 

“You most certainly do not!” Angelica replied with a chuckle.

 

Where they didn’t always see eye to eye, Eliza knew that her sister would fight tooth and nail for her. Blood was thick, and her sister clearly saw that ideology. In fact, Angelica’s views on sisterhood was a very strong factor in her decision to become a social worker. Too often were siblings split up in unfortunate circumstances, and Eliza wished to make sure that all children were safe and well taken care of. Including her own.

 

The two sisters sat in silence for what felt like ages; Angelica busy scrolling her Twitter feed, and Eliza still nose deep in the gorgeous leather book. The silence between the two was very comfortable, with not a hint of awkward tension. When they were young, they had planned out their lives in a considerably different way. Little Eliza had already thought that she’d be married. Wasn’t that almost every little girl’s dream? The thought made the younger sister feel a bit sick. There was a lack of female role models in society. Perhaps that was why she was so proud of her big sister. Angelica was entering the male dominated world of politics and she was better than the majority of men in it already! She wished she could be more like Angelica in some ways. She admired her wit and her strength. It was almost impossible to really fathom what amazing things Angelica had worked out in her mind. She was always two steps ahead of the game. Always.

 

“It’s getting late. Let me walk you home.” Angelica whispered to her sister after about a half hour had passed. The younger yawned, stretching her arms up and gazing at her sister. It had been one hell of a day, that was for sure.

 

“Alright, alright… We can leave. By the way,” Eliza paused with a slight smirk, “Guess who I saw today?”

 

“No. You didn’t!” Angelica gasped, covering her mouth with her palm. She had no idea how her sister could remain so calm and cool around the likes of the woman who had cheated with someone she had loved for ages.

 

“She actually showed up for work today.”

 

“Did you chew her out?”

 

“You know, I really don’t care anymore… As much as I am angry, I realize that no matter what I do, it can’t be taken back. Maybe she’s actually sorry. You never know…” Eliza let out a deep sigh, pushing in her chair and hugging her new find to her chest. Angelica followed her up to the counter, not paying much attention at all as she watched her sister check out, yet again, another ridiculous book. As soon as they were out of earshot, she turned her head slightly towards Eliza, a frown tugging at the corners of her lips.

 

“We both know what kind of person she is,” she replied, spite thick in her voice. She linked arms with her younger sister, leading her out of the library and back to Eliza’s building. Angelica exhaled, poison all but dripping from her lips as she spat, “And I’m sure that Alexander knows best.”


	4. Burr

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> recommended listening: bone digger - bear hands

Honestly! That was the third time someone had blown him off that week! Was there something that wrong with him that no one could be inclined to speak to him for more than a few minutes?! Aaron Burr was a nice guy, a respectable, kind gentleman! He did not deserve this kind of treatment, it was so  _ uncouth _ ! He hated the food on campus, but he was too nervous to venture off campus alone to get something to eat. He thought that his so-called friends would be there to accompany him on his adventures to explore the city in a culinary sense, but they seemed deaf to the idea. Thus, Aaron Burr was forced to discover new cuisine by his lonesome at the late-night-student-run-all-you-can-eat cafeteria. Anything with that many hyphens just couldn't be good.

 

The food was ghastly, and Burr couldn't help but feel sick when he thought about another god forsaken night of cold, lumpy macaroni and cheese. Lafayette and Hercules had so rudely turned him down; he couldn't dare face anyone else. He sat on a bench outside of the dorm building, brandishing his black iPhone 7 Plus -- oh, yes, he was that sophisticated! Although some would refer to him as being  _ extra _ . He couldn't help but to take it as a superb compliment. After all, he was deserving of such praise! He scrolled through his contacts, internally screaming. Most of these people had already made it clear that they didn't want to spend any kind of time with him. When he came across Alexander Hamilton’s contact information, he couldn't help but smile. 

 

Alexander usually always agreed to go on outings with him without much persuasion at all. Burr had given him his freshman orientation! They were definitely buddies, regardless of what anyone else said. He simply couldn't just text Alex, that was for sure. Burr was better than that! Texting was for weak simpletons who were too indecisive to speak. Thus, he called Alexander.

 

“Hey, man, what's up?” Alexander greeted; Burr could hear John laughing in the background and assumed that he could invite him along too. He wasn't too fond of Alex’s other friends. They didn't seem to like him all that much.

 

“I was wondering if you'd like to accompany me to dinner!” Burr replied, as enthusiastic as ever.

 

“U-Uhh, dude I’m at the library with John… Maybe some--”

 

“Hey! You should totally bring John along! It could be really fun, just the three of us!” Burr exclaimed, a grin clearly visible to any who walked past him. There was muffled silence on the other end for a substantial amount of time, and he couldn't help but suspect that Alex was asking his cohort if he was comfortable with an outing such as Burr was suggesting.

 

“Yeah… Sure…” came the reply, a bit hesitantly. Burr failed to notice the labored response, just happy that he wouldn’t have to be alone in the cafeteria again!

 

“Picasso’s in half an hour? I’ll make reservations!”

 

“See you then, dude…” And before Burr could reply, they had hung up. Still! A dinner with Alex and John?! This would be so fun! Maybe John could even become his friend! He wished that Lafayette and Mulligan had agreed to come, but it would be a better time with just the trio tonight! Squad goals! Oh, Burr definitely had to make a cute little group chat  _ right now _ .

 

He jumped up from the bench and happily danced around, fully aware that he was outside and in a very public area.

 

“What has gotten into you?” came a truly exasperated voice from behind him, “Did you win the lottery? If so, I have always been civil towards you, Aaron.”

 

“James! I just made plans! I’m going to Picasso’s soon. Actually, I should be heading there now! Do you want to join me?” Burr asked his friend, his whole face beaming with pure joy.

 

“Mm. No. I have to continue my cleaning. Thomas will be home soon and I want to make sure that his half of the dorm is completely spotless. Perhaps next week?” Madison responded, less than amused with the entire situation. He was always reserved and usually monotonous, but this was to an all new level. Surely Thomas would find this hilarious if he was beside him. Burr’s oblivious attitude was refreshing, but also very concerning.

 

“Tuesday? We could go for sushi!” Burr suggested, excitement rising in his chest as he saw his friend shrug. Another set of plans! It was his lucky day!

 

“Do take care, Aaron,” Madison spoke his farewell as more of a warning. As he finished throwing away his trash, he retreated quickly inside the building. Burr still smiled, starting his long, arduous walk to the neat little restaurant.

 

Picasso’s was the most evident foil to the library. Obviously there were no books, but it was worse than that. There was no room to move around, it was rather dark and void of any silence. It had more of a bar atmosphere than anything else. Usually, Burr would think poorly of this atmosphere and shun the small business; however, they had the best barbecue chicken nachos in existence. In fact, they should have been considered a delicacy. Therefore, making the exhausting trek was more than worth it. The first time he had been there was with James and Thomas. They didn't seem to mind the volume at all, and neither commented on the types of people that were in the restaurant-turned-bar. He wondered how Alex and John would react. What if they were even more disgusted than he was?

 

Burr tried not to think about the impending weight of his friends’ disapproval, merely following the directions listed on his iPhone -- once again, 7 Plus -- to safely arrive at Picasso’s right on time. The irony struck him when he approached the door; how could a beautiful artist be compared to this dump? Perhaps the nachos were the true art of the place. Burr walked in, straightening out his suit with a steady hand. He quickly spotted his friends in a nearby booth, already with drinks. Oh well, he couldn't have expected that they would wait for him, now could he? Stepping up to the bar, he quickly ordered himself a water and the appetizer he desired so much. What was a life without good food? Certainly not a life that Aaron Burr wanted to live in. Hopefully Alex and John would agree with his ideology.

 

He sat down across from them, an uncomfortable smile rested on his lips. “Hello!” he set his water down on the table; there was no coaster, how tacky! Burr let out a small sigh, nervously drumming his fingertips against the scratched wooden table.

 

“Hey,” John greeted, leaning onto Alex and placing a hand on his chest, tugging a bit at his jacket. Hamilton must have gotten the point, and pulled away from John only to slip off his jacket and hand it to his companion. Once Laurens was wearing said jacket, he was immediately plastered right back onto Alexander. The entire scene was a bit  _ crude _ to Aaron. He anxiously shifted his weight on the uncomfortably hard, glorified bench he had placed himself on.

 

“What even is this place?” Alexander questioned, wrapping an arm around John’s shoulders and pulling the freckled male a bit closer to him. 

 

“It’s a little bit dirty, but, ah! You see, they have, uh, these nachos! They're very good! Yes, it isn't even close to being elegant, but the food is the true star of the show… You can tune it all out if you try hard enough!” Burr replied, in reference to the semi decrepit restaurant. It had an almost Southern feel to it, but none of the comfort. Burr clasped his hands together, forcing a smile when he heard Alexander and John both laugh.

 

“Dude, it's cool. Chill out, we love places like this,” John purred, nuzzling against Alexander.

 

“It's true,  _ we _ do. Thank you for introducing us to it, Aaron. It’s a wonderful venue for a date night, don't you think?” Alex purred right back, mimicking John just a tad.

 

“No, not really. I do not agree.” admitted Burr, tilting his head in a confused state, “Why would you want to bring someone you love to a place like this? If they had a to-go system, it would be more efficient and less… unclean…”

 

“What's wrong with getting down ‘n dirty, Burr?” Alex asked, eliciting a giggle from John. The smaller male leaned upwards, nipping at Hamilton’s neck.

 

“Just about everything…” came the downtrodden reply. Why were they acting like this? Now, he usually avoided them, so, naturally, he had no frame of reference. That didn't stop him from believing that his assumptions and thoughts were completely correct about the situation at hand. Unfolding in front of him was the confirmation of all of the rumors he had accumulated over the past few weeks. Was this truly who Alexander was? “Usually the appetizers are out by now… I wonder why they are moving at breakneck speed, ha….”

 

“Burr, you ordered a  _ water _ . Usually drink orders take a while, and then apps take even longer. Just because you ordered something boring doesn’t mean that we have to suffer,” John rolled his eyes, “They don’t even card here. You should have ordered a beer.”

 

“It’s true, they didn’t ask any questions. It’s not like anyone cares. Let loose, Aaron. Drink!” Hamilton chimed in, lifting his glass to his lips and taking a sip. Burr was exhausted, truly. He just wanted to leave at this point. He had severely misjudged his friends. It seemed that the only thing that mattered to them was a gross show of PDA and underage drinking. How could Burr have let this happen? These men were not as sophisticated as him and clearly did not share his artistic vision. These were not people that he could discuss anything with. Had they ever even  _ been _ to a restaurant where one didn’t smell cigarette smoke?

 

“No thank you. I don’t like to participate in illegal activities…” he choked out, anxiously checking the watch on his wrist and tapping his foot. Where was his food?

 

“God, you sound like Madison before he started hanging around Jefferson!” Hamilton groaned, “Speaking of dumbasses, why aren’t you hanging out with them?”

 

“Madison is busy cleaning,” Burr explained, “I wouldn’t dare interrupt a man’s chores.”

 

Hamilton knew this was a false fact. Madison had been cleaning earlier in the day! That’s why Jefferson was at the library in the first place. Whenever Madison was cleaning, Jefferson was free for a little messing around. Hamilton had picked up on this when he had first started to flirt with the aforementioned man. For once in his life, Hamilton kept his mouth shut. Now was not the most appropriate time to tell Aaron that he had been lied to. Poor kid; Alexander actually felt a bit bad for him. Then again, it was  _ Burr _ , and exactly how sorry could one feel for him?

 

Burr let out an inconspicuous sigh of relief as he saw the large plate of nachos coming towards their table. Oh thank God! Maybe Hamilton and Laurens wouldn’t be so  _ gross _ and all over each other now that their meal was here. As soon as plates were set down, Burr immediately tore into the large mount of multicolor tortilla chips, sweet barbecue sauce, melted cheese, and smoked chicken. He procured a knife and fork from his ineptly wrapped silverware, setting the napkin on his lap like a true gentleman. He brought a chip with all of the toppings to his lips, inhaling slowly before he finally put it into his mouth. He was suddenly hyper-aware that there were other people in the same space as he. John’s face was scrunched up in confusion, where as Alexander looked a bit critical and disgusted. Both men’s eyes were wide and full of concern, staring at the odd display of eating. Where they came from, one just shoved as much food into their mouth as possible. They didn’t  _ sniff _ their food, neither did they use utensils for  _ nachos _ .

 

“Gay,” Alex stated, glancing over at John, who immediately giggled at him.

 

“Gayest shit I’ve ever seen,” he confirmed, sticking his tongue out at his companion.

 

Burr sat in silence, awkwardly forking the nacho-y goodness into his mouth. Maybe if he pretended that he wasn’t witnessing his friends about to hook up right in front of him he would be able to truly enjoy these nachos. Unfortunately, he had to watch them exchange bedroom eyes towards each other. Hadn’t Alexander and Eliza broken up not too long ago? How was Hamilton  _ already _ obsessed with someone else? Burr couldn’t hide the disgust rising in his belly. He suddenly wished that Madison and Jefferson had accompanied him instead of the two latinos. Burr couldn’t lie, he was very much a prude when it came to these situations. PDA was most certainly not his thing! He glanced up at them for a few seconds, getting a front row seat to Alexander swapping spit with John. It was lewd; not just a simple kiss. He couldn’t handle watching this! It was practically voyeurism at this point. Don’t throw up, keep it cool!

 

“Are you going to eat any nachos?” Burr asked meekly, pushing the large platter towards them just a tad.

 

“I know what I’m going to  _ eat _ ,” Alex purred. Immediately Burr felt extremely repulsed. He had no desire to hear sexual comments being made while he was enjoying  _ his _ nachos that  _ he _ was paying for.

 

“There’s a filthy, bacteria infested bathroom stall you can go to if you’d wish to continue,” Burr stated rather coldly, “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to get a box for my leftovers. I have a paper due tonight at midnight anyways…”

 

“We’re just kissing?” Alex asked, looking as offended as ever.

 

“Why do you have a problem with that?” John spat, eyes narrowed.

 

Aaron was already out of the booth, halfway to the bar. He pulled out a twenty, handed it to the bartender, received a box, and returned to the table only to carefully prepare the nachos for transport. This had been an utter disaster; it was truly one hell of a mistake.

 

“You’re seriously going to leave?” Alexander questioned, “Oh my god! How pretentious are you, Burr?”

 

“Goodbye, Hamilton. Laurens.” Burr breathed, shutting the black styrofoam lid. He cringed a bit at the sound the plastic material made as it scratched against itself. All he knew was that he needed to leave as soon as possible. He heard the two men scoff at him, but he paid no attention. Why should he have to subject himself to that kind of torture? Did those two have no respect for anyone? He turned on his heel, clicking his tongue before exiting Picasso’s like a man on a mission. After all, his nachos were going to get cold if he subjected them to the winter weather for too long. He all but raced to his dorm, careful not to be hit by any passing cars. It was a shame that he was forced to leave so abruptly, but could anyone blame him? Could anyone tolerate those two?

 

At least Burr would be able to enjoy his nachos all by himself from the safety of his dorm room. No one would be able to ruin that for him.


	5. Laurens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> recommended listening: you are going to hate this - the frights

What a pretentious asshole. Burr just had to ruin everything didn’t he? Oh, how Laurens loathed that man. He thought he was so superior to everyone and had the most terrible god complex in existence. Why did that man have to believe that the world revolved around him and his shitty opinions? “So he invited us to just fucking insult us and then ditch out!” Laurens hissed, curling up to Hamilton and letting out a deep breath he didn’t know that he had been holding, “Fuck that guy.”

 

“No thanks, I’d rather it be you,” Hamilton teased, hopeful to turn the focus away from Burr’s rudeness and back to the fact that he was romancing the hell out of Laurens. Or at least he was trying to. ‘Finish your beer, let’s go get in the backseat of your car.”

 

“I still have about a quarter of it left, Alex?”

 

“Chug it. Don’t be a pussy, John,” he replied, waiting a few seconds before downing the rest of his beer. He fished out a few ones from his back pocket and threw them on the table. He raised an eyebrow in wait, a smirk crossing his lips as he watched John’s shocked expression fade. John couldn’t hold his liquor near as well as his friends could. He was always the first one drunk and the first one to be vomiting. Reluctantly, he rose the bottle to his lips, sent up a silent prayer, and then downed the entire thing to impress his companion. Admittedly, he was easily conned into things he didn’t want to do. The lightweight was easily influenced by alcohol, and even more influenced by Alexander. As much as John felt guilty, he couldn’t abstain from Alex. He was addicting, and most people didn’t understand that. Hamilton made others feel like they were important and like they actually meant something to him. John felt valuable alongside his companion. Sure, there were no titles on the relationship, but it was still valid, wasn’t it? Surely Alexander only had this type of bond with John.

 

“There. Happy?” he asked with a sleepy smile. He wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve and blinked a few times, which in turn made Alex laugh. John was just trying to be cool and fit in, it wasn’t his fault that he didn’t exactly love the taste of beer. He’d have to agree with Burr if he were still there -- this place did not serve the best tasting  _ anything _ . Oh well, being there was still worth it! It was rare that Alexander spent any alone time with him, usually they only hung out with each other whilst in a large group. It was definitely possible to feel lonely and anxious within a large group, that was for sure. Laurens often doubted if his own friends even liked him. Mulligan was impossible to read; that man was as complicated as his clothing designs! Lafayette was gentle and forgiving, but he had most likely become very upset with how John had teased him. He wasn’t trying to be mean, but he felt a pang of regret when he thought about it. The Frenchman didn’t deserve that at all… As for Alexander, that was a different story. Their relationship was completely undefined. He wanted to be more than this. Whatever  _ this _ happened to be. It was amazing when they were near each other; Alex was always very physically affectionate and acted like he truly had feelings for him. However, whenever John would ask if he wanted to go out on a date or do anything just involving them exclusively, it felt like he had to coerce Hamilton into it. He didn’t want to go out on any dates, that much was evident. While it made John a bit sad, he figured it was because it was too soon after Eliza. He still wasn’t sure why they had broken up, but he imagined it had to do with why Alexander had been acting so strangely.

 

John had always wished for his best friend to kiss him, but he knew that Eliza came first. He wouldn’t have ever done anything to jeopardize their relationship; however, he was a bit happy that now she was out of the picture. He’d never hurt Eliza, and now he wouldn’t have to. Pretending that she didn’t exist was the easy route, and it relieved John of a substantial amount of bone crushing guilt. He wasn’t  _ that guy  _ and he’d never be  _ that guy _ , oh hell no. His mother had raised him right! Treating others with love and respect even when it’s extremely difficult is just the right way to be, right? It wasn’t anything special, it was basic human decency.

 

Sometimes Alexander Hamilton lacked basic human decency.

 

As much as John didn’t want to admit it, his best friend happened to be toxic. He never acted normally around Hamilton, he was always agreeable and would do anything for his best friend no matter what the consequences may be. It was as if he had no control of himself anymore. Laurens was completely under Hamilton’s spell whether he liked it or not. Oh God, he wanted to like it. He really did. Alas, John was not an idiot. He knew that what Hamilton was doing was inherently wrong no matter how he tried to justify his actions. Half the time while he explained himself he was incoherent. As much as John tried, he truly couldn't always understand what his best friend was saying to him at all. He put so much effort into deciphering Alexander’s meanings, but it was utterly impossible! That man might as well be speaking a foreign language to him half the time… John couldn’t even imagine how confused Lafayette must be. Alexander should have his own damn language at this point in John’s eyes.

 

“Very much so. Can we go to your car now?” Alex asked, placing his palm on his companion’s knee and sliding it up his thigh. Relax, John. It’s all alright, John. He repeated those two sentences in his mind over and over and over again, trying to decide how to react to Alexander’s advances. How many times had they done shit in the back of his car now? It wasn’t romantic at all, to say the least. There were no rose petals or comfortable positions… It was fun, sure. John more than enjoyed his time spent with Alexander in that backseat, but he was getting tired of only getting any action from within a car. There had to be somewhere else they could go that was better, right? This was getting ridiculous.

 

“Why don’t we go back to your room?” John suggested, a nervous smile on his lips. The way the dim light hit Hamilton’s features and glowed off of his skin made him weak. Oh good lord, oh fuck. He yearned to kiss those lips and feel just how soft they were once more. Months of lusting after Alex had not been easy, to say the least. Couldn’t they just kiss one more time? Without any kind of arguing? He felt sick to his stomach. Perhaps he had just ruined an incredibly good thing with his loud mouth. He couldn’t help himself, there was just no stopping him. He had to know if Alexander was only into feeling boys up in the back of their cars or if he was willing to do something meaningful and emotional. John shouldn’t be wasting his time, he knew this, but Alexander was everything to him. His unrequited emotions had been the death of him! He needed to know if there was even a chance that Alexander wanted him more than in a sexual way.

 

"Have you ever been on a date before? Or have you just had men that don't know how to be romantic and cerebral? I know I come across as a certain way, but I'm a real romantic, John. I just get very impulsive when attractive men are around. Especially ones like you. You're captivating, you know that?" He winked at Laurens, a grin on those soft looking lips. Alexander couldn’t care less that they were still in a public place, he was going to whatever he wanted whenever he wanted. While it was admirable to John, it was also terrifying. What was Hamilton truly capable of?

 

However, Laurens hadn't expected that reaction at all. His eyes lit up, and he grinned at the man beside him. "Oh? I don’t know about that, Alexander," he purred, soft freckled cheeks flushing pink, "Maybe you can do the honor of showing me a real date, huh? I’d like that very much. Honestly, I think we’d back such a great pair, don’t you?" He was absolutely intrigued now, his hands shaking at the prospect of going on dates with his best friend. Oh god, he really should have washed his hair and wore something that wasn't in the large hoodie variety of clothing! Nevertheless, Alexander seemed to be romantically interested, and that was always a good sign.

 

"John Laurens, I'll treat you right, baby. I'll take you out, blow all my cash on you, and make you feel like you’re the only human being in the world that deserves all my attention and more. You'd like that, wouldn't you? You may think I'm just a difficult asshole who can’t keep commitments, but I'm much more than that; I'll take you somewhere truly romantic and whisper sweet nothings in your ear... Then, I'll take you home and fuck your brains out. Sound good? It'll be our little test run. I can be very generous, John Laurens. Has anyone taken the time to truly worship you? You know, John, you might just want a second date with me. You might even want to give up your weed. I’ll be that good, John, truly," Alex leaned in, pressing gentle kisses the the freckled boy’s neck. His hand was still firmly in place on John’s leg; other hand reaching up to cup his cheek. John’s face was bright red at this point with embarrassment. The art major could only sit still and let his companion kiss on him. Just like that, he was completely addicted once more.

 

Laurens did love his weed, but he didn't use it for recreational purposes. It was self medication. He couldn't afford insurance, much less therapy or pills. His mind was a jumbled mess that left him constantly scribbling little pre-drawings down like if they weren't recorded, they'd be gone forever and he would never be able to make true art out of his moment of inspiration. Weed helped keep him calm and helped him unwind from his myriad of stressful situations. Weed was the reason he'd been even considered worthy by a few rich art dealers in the first place. The assumptions and judgement made about John were most often false -- he just couldn't control his gullibility. He believed that people were truly good deep down and he was always too quick to believe them. Especially Alexander, Maybe that was what was happening now?

 

“If that’s what you want, I’d be happy to supply you with the true boyfriend experience,” Alexander stated, “Let’s make out a little bit, nothing more, and then I’ll take you on a real date later. I’m going to blow your fucking mind, John Laurens.” Had he read his mind? This was almost exactly what Laurens wanted to hear. Never had he imagined Hamilton doing anything like this before. He had always assumed that monogamy was too difficult for Alex. Truthfully, Laurens had only ever kissed Hamilton. He wasn’t one for romantic feelings or for relationships for that matter. His love was something to be sought after; it was extremely coveted. John was sweet, he wouldn’t ever intentionally cause any harm to someone. His companion, on the other end, would not waste an opportunity to be on the offensive. Alexander loved to argue and John avoided confrontation unless he was pushed into it.

 

“Perfect,” he breathed, his eyes glazed over. He reluctantly pulled away from Hamilton, slipping out of the booth and heading towards the exit. Alexander followed up behind him, unable to resist reaching over to squeeze his ass. Laurens jumped a bit, surprised that he had been touched like that. He glared at Alexander who merely shrugged and laughed it off. Laurens rolled his eyes, letting Hamilton grab his hand and intertwine their fingers. For a moment it felt as if they were actually dating and as if a real relationship between them would be possible. For just a moment, their future was promising and obstacle free. For a split second, John Laurens was carefree.


	6. Madison

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> recommended listening: cigarette daydreams - cage the elephant

Whenever Jefferson came home pissed off, it was better to speak to him rather than let all of his anger develop and cultivate inside of him. Madison knew the taller man like the back of his hand; every quirk and idiosyncrasy was easily discovered and understood in the matter of a few months. He had come to appreciate the subtle quirks and odd behavior of his roommate. Today he looked especially riled up, his usually flawless appearance a bit ruffled. James knew something was off the moment that door flew open and his lovely best friend stomped into their newly cleaned dorm. Oh, he was so predictable. Madison had already narrowed it down to three possible things that could be the source of all of this passionate aggression.

 

“Good evening, TJ,” he greeted calmly, looking up from his desk to turn and face the other man, “Before you sit down, everything is clean and in pristine shape. I even organized your notebooks for you, I hope you don't mind. Now, what seems to be the matter?” Perhaps it was worse than he had originally assumed. Jefferson dug through one of his bags that had been neatly placed on a hanging rack, fumbling around for what Madison called a  _ disgrace to society. _ He clasped his fingers around the metal object, lifting it up in victory. Madison truly believed vaping to be incredibly unattractive and extremely unhealthy. It was an activity for the annoying. Yet when he watched Jefferson exhale the fumes, there was something a bit more poetic about it.

 

“I brought you something,” Jefferson stated, ignoring his roommate’s questions. He threw his schoolbag onto his bed, opening it up and grabbing a small bag. He tossed it at Madison, who -- by some act of nature -- managed to catch it. “Consider it a thank you for letting me unwind. I know, I know, you don't want me to vape in the dorm! Well, I’ve had a pretty shitty day, so eat your damn apple whatevers and let me chill. I’m sorry.”

 

“I appreciate it, thank you, TJ. These apple tarts are perhaps the best thing in that entire bakery. Would you like one?” Madison replied, keeping his voice relaxed and a bit monotonous. He knew how to handle Jefferson on his bad days. The taller of the two took another drag, leaning his head back and exhaling the vapor. James figured that he already had a physical addiction to whatever was in those things. He wouldn't complain today; arguing with his roommate while he was in one of his moods would be completely detrimental to the situation and nothing would be solved at all. It would take time to convince him to ease up on the habit, and it would have to be done tactfully. 

 

“Hamilton is unbelievable! He's an insolent fucking idiot, James! He harasses me -- while I’m doing math, mind you -- and then he tries to have sex with me! I’ve never hated a man more in my life! You don't understand, James, he's infuriating!” he cried out, waving his free hand wildly.

 

“Hm. Did you engage in any activity with him?”

 

“What?! No!” he spat, clearly offended at the partially correct accusation brought forth by his friend. Thomas snorted, narrowing his eyes at the other man and taking another drag from his vape. James knew that Jefferson was lying when he stated that he didn’t want to be associated with Alexander in any way shape or form; he was intelligent enough to decipher the truth and true meaning of his best friends’ words.

 

“TJ, you never say what you mean, nor do you mean what you say. Now, you don’t look too ruffled, so I don’t imagine you went too… far. Please do not tell me that you were somewhere  _ public _ . I’d never be able to look at you the same knowing that…” Madison drawled, sitting down beside Jefferson in spite of the nasty vapor. He opened the bag that contained the tarts and started enjoying one of them, watching his poor, almost tasteless, friend blow smoke rings. The fact that you were most certainly not supposed to vape in the building and yet his beloved companion did so anyways was getting under his skin. However, he knew that Jefferson was in a state of irrationality. Apparently, he had almost hooked up with none other than Alexander Hamilton. The man couldn’t be anywhere near sane. What had gotten into his usually levelheaded, sophisticated debate partner? He was slipping into chaos and James just couldn’t allow this wretched behavior to continue any longer.

 

“We went back to his dorm…” Jefferson replied, exhaling audibly, “It’s always sex with him. That’s all he wants from me. God, I’m such a fucking idiot, James.”

 

“You mean to say that you have feelings for Hamilton?” Madison asked, shock escaping his filtered tone. This was unexpected. His best friend never acted smitten over anyone. If he had shown any sort of affection, it was towards  _ him.  _ Perhaps Madison felt a bit jealous. Afterall, how could he refrain from showing extreme concern for the only person on earth that kept his life interesting? Without Jefferson things would become incredibly dull. One could say that Madison lived through others vicariously; especially Jefferson. No one was so unique and intriguing. The few friends he had besides him were so flat and lifeless; especially Burr. While he attempted to remain as civil as possible with everyone, it was difficult to treat Burr with that same silent disapproval. However, Thomas was a different story. Vocalizing his opinion on his friend’s poor choices was the only way to snap him out of whatever mood he was in. This senseless destruction of the lungs coupled by an admission of feelings for Hamilton had to come to an end.

 

Who took care of Jefferson? Certainly not Hamilton! Madison was there whenever he needed a break from studying. Madison was there when he was sick and vomiting for hours on end. Madison was there when his mother had called him threatening to disown him. Madison was there for  _ every _ conceivable instance that left Jefferson in an unfavorable situation. This was the thanks he was given? Jefferson was just going to allow himself to be Eliza’s sloppy seconds? Oh, please. Madison had invested far too much time and patience into Jefferson to have this be what he received in return for his selfless care. James was well aware that his best friend liked to use people, but he had never expected him to become the victim. Madison had briefly associated with Hamilton not too long ago and once was more than enough. He had never met someone so deplorable. So, how could Jefferson be falling for an asshole like that instead of someone that happened to be named James Madison?

 

“It’s not like that,” Jefferson stated, after a few moments of careful thinking, “He lures you in. Makes it fucking impossible to say no… Like, does that make any sense at all to you?”

 

“More than you know, TJ,” Madison replied, praying that his friend would not pick up on the sarcasm laced into every word. If only Jefferson could see that he wasn’t all that different than Hamilton when it came to exploiting human emotions.

 

“I don’t like him. I don’t want to date him. I do not want to be in the same room as him ever again… Yet, I haven’t had anyone interested in me for  _ so long _ that I just jumped at the fucking chance! I was like one of those starving dogs that, instead of being offered a cheeseburger, is offered a wet hotdog and because the dog is starving to death, it happily accepts the processed meat only to be fucking captured and possibly euthanized. Is assisted suicide legal here? Please, have mercy, James. Give me the euthanasia.”

 

“You are one of the oddest people I’ve ever met. Are you blind? Or am I just so subtle that my interest is only painfully obvious to me?” James shot back, shooting a cold glance at his friend. He had been trying to get Jefferson to understand him for ages and the other man just never got the point. He was subtle, but he thought the little things would make the biggest impact. For instance, he always cleaned Jefferson’s portion of the dorm, often times did his laundry, and always made sure that he had finished his homework and any papers that were due. When Jefferson bought him pastries, put his pills into a weekly schedule, and took care of him when he had fallen ill, he had always considered it as reciprocation. Perhaps it was merely a simple show of gratitude for all that James did for him. Oh well, Madison was still clearly more desirable than Hamilton, that much was for sure.

 

“You’re not seriously doing this shit right now, are you?” Jefferson hissed, “I was  _ just _ solicited for sex and now you think it’s a good time to talk to me about how you like me? Not cool, James. Seriously, I can’t fucking handle this shit right now! I guess I’ll just fail Calculus II, good plan! Quick, everyone try to get in my fucking pants, I’m trying to do my math homework!” He was all but yelling, his hand movements a bit wild and messier than usual. Madison couldn’t help but smile. He couldn’t tell if his friend was being serious or not, but his hyperbolization of events was always so amusing. He told the best stories and always gave the best extended metaphors. Jefferson was a true piece of art, and Madison deeply admired him and all of his pertinent flaws. He bet that Hamilton never even had a deep thought about  _ why _ TJ acted the way he did. “Stop fucking laughing. I’m being serious. I’m pissed at you.”

 

“I’m not even laughing, TJ. I’m just smiling.”

 

“Stop that. You can’t be happy. I’m going to fucking punch you.”

 

“I bought you those purple post-its that you couldn’t find at the store the other day. They’re in your top drawer. You’re welcome.”

 

“You’re going to admit to having gay ass feelings to your best friend and then just completely fucking change the topic? What the hell is wrong with you?”

 

“Well, your response showed me that you did not want to discuss these things. I am only following what you want, Thomas,” he paused, “I’ve even allowed you to break the rules because I know that you’ve had a rough day.”

 

“Why did I make out with Hamilton?”

 

“You’re struggling right now. Your life is radically changing… Your parents are being less than accepting of you and your choices. It is never an easy thing to go through. Thus, you are disobeying their standards and, in the process, some of your own standards. It’s a common phenomenon.”

 

“I hate that you’re a psych major. I really do.”

 

“Hm. How much would you love me if I did your math homework for you?”

 

“I am not at liberty to tell you that. You’ll do it anyways because I feel like shit. Just so we’re clear, do  _ not _ try to kiss me. I need to wash the Hamilton out of my mouth. Might as well use bleach as mouthwash, that’s the only way,” Jefferson responded, his face scrunching up in disgust. He squirmed a bit, tossing the vape pen into his bag and sighing in an overly obnoxious way.

 

“As if I would kiss you after you’ve been doing that,” James shot back, folding his arms neatly across his chest.

 

“Shotgunning is pretty hot. I think that would definitely change your mind on my habit,” he stated with a smirk, holding out his hand, palm up, a simple gesture. Madison, a bit reluctantly, placed his hand into Jefferson’s, glancing at the other man blankly. It was always a complete three sixty in temperament with that man… Madison considered that this was, in fact, a one time deal that would end after tonight. It was unlikely that his best friend would keep up with the physical affection.

 

“I think you have a personality disorder,” Madison replied, although he wasn’t too sure that it was all in good fun. Jefferson was under an intense amount of stress and he had always had radical changes in his emotions on the turn of a dime. Diagnosing and testing his best friend was completely out of the question. Madison simply couldn’t bring himself to bring science into this. He loved the illusion that Jefferson had about him. Using facts and reasoning to explain the way his beloved friend acted and responded to certain stimuli would completely decimate the beautiful image of Jefferson and his aesthetic that Madison so adored in his mind.

 

“You’re probably right,” he paused, “Do my math homework and I’ll give you your first kiss.”

 

“Excuse me, what?”

 

“I’m your best friend, I’m not fucking stupid. You don’t get along with people. You’ve never been kissed before.”

 

“That is most certainly not true!”

 

“Who was your first kiss, Mads?”

 

“I was rather inebriated and there was a lady at a party who was also inebriated... and we ended up kissing.”

 

_ “Faaake. _ Doesn’t count. You were drunk and you’re gay,” Jefferson laughed, smiling that gorgeous smile of his. The way his whole face lit up was just beautiful to Madison. Who knew a simple pull of facial muscles could end up in causing his stomach to tie itself up in knots? “Tomorrow you become a real man!” Jefferson dug through his bag, handing his best friend the folder than contained his math homework. Madison rolled his eyes, but took the folder, retiring to his desk to start finishing it all for him. He heard Jefferson lay down and pull his blankets around him. “Goodnight, James.”

 

“Goodnight, Thomas.”


End file.
